Too funny… But I think they are trying to say that they have to charge you tax on the equipment (or the “activation”, I forget) up front even if you are not paying upfront for the equipment (its part of the monthly bill – as a cell phone company does). Maybe they have the same billing software that MEDICARE uses? :-)
But Seriously, if this is from directv – you should goto the company site and check your account info, too.

LOL! That reminds me of my last cable bill . . .I have cable TV, high speed internet, and VOIP phone service on one bill. My first bill was for a little over three million dollars! I cracked up laughing, and so did the customer service rep when I called their billing dept.